288: Stop 3 for Countryside Softies…..

288: Stop 3 for Countryside Softies…..

Hello there!  If you are stopping by for the first time to the Blue Nickel….welcome!

Today is a “special” day as I think it is the first time I have been part of an international Blog Book Tour!  And I am so delighted that this first time event here is for Amy Adams‘ Countryside Softies !

I received a digital copy to review…and  Dang!! These are the cutest creations ever!!  Every single one of these critters has such charm and character.   And the photography for this book is awesome!  The directions are well laid out with great illustrations and photos showing you how to pop these babies out….

all photos are courtesy of Stash Books and they show you just how cute these creatures really are.   But not pictured are some of my favorites…..you will have to get the book to meet the swan, the kingfisher, and the squirrel with his fabulous tail!!

And even better Miss Amy stopped by here all the way across the Atlantic and the breadth of the US to visit us on the West Coast!!  ( I love the internet for that ability!)

She has even agreed to grant us a little interview!  So welcome Amy!!

BNS: The  first question and this is just for me…you created the peacock in the Birds collaborative book, right? that is so adorable…I have an almost finished one that I started last May that I just love….and it IS so forgiving that’s what I love. I thrive on a little wonkiness every once in awhile!

AMY: The story behind the Peacock, is when C&T Publishing first approached me about submitting a book proposal, I was also asked to submit for the ‘Little Birds’ book too. So, I doubled up and created a whole birds chapter which was used for both submissions. The Peacock and the Stork went into the ‘Little Birds’ book and the Kingfisher ended up in ‘Countryside Softies’. I have a family of Penguins left, maybe they’ll end up in my next book!

BNS: What is the oldest thing in your refrigerator?

AMY: Eeek, a jar of red pesto. Which finally got used up at tea time in a tuna pasta salad.

BNS: What is the first Crafty thing you remember making?

AMY: When I was little, I remember my mum sewing and knitting a lot, she used to make a fair few of my clothes. She also had a button stash which I used to sit and play with. I knew back then, I had done some sewing but had forgotten all about it until she passed on her old wooden sewing box to me. Inside, there was a little square pincushion with a felt ‘Snoopy’ shape on the front which I made, I suppose I must have been about 8.

BNS: What was your favorite color as a child? what about now?

AMY: I was the same as most little girls back then, and my favourite colour was pink. Nowadays I’d say it’s red.

BNS: What Softie have you not yet made that you really, really want to, but haven’t yet attempted??

AMY: I really want to make a pinecone. So many other Softie makers have already made superb pinecones though, I shy away from making one. I also find the idea of making Softies of inanimate objects inspiring, and have a hankering to make a clock and a globe.

BNS: What is your favorite Childhood memory?

AMY: There are so many thing to choose from here, but recently, I’ve been thinking about the street parties we had here in the UK, 1977 (I was 7) and it was for the Queen’s Silver Jubilee. With the Royal Wedding imminent, I’m hoping to have a bit of a garden party and recreate 1977, union jack bunting and flares maybe.

BNS: If you could go back in time, what would you have done differently if you were given the chance?

AMY: Now, that’s a question and a half! Keeping things light, I would say, the day I went clothes shopping, I went into the fitting room to try on a pair of trousers and walked back out into a crowded shop in just my underwear, I would go back and whisper in my ear “put your skirt back on you numb nut”. My excuse is, I was very tired, new baby who didn’t sleep, just about to go back to work after a very short maternity leave etc etc…

BNS: Favorite Cookie?

AMY: Anyone who reads my blog will know I am a bit of a greedy pig when it comes to anything chocolatey. I don’t have favourites when it comes to sweet things, I eat them all.

BNS: Favorite Music Group when you were in school?

AMY: Human League. A lot of my friends were into Duran Duran and Wham, but I was a big Human League fan in the 80’s.

BNS: Favorite Music Group now?

AMY: I listen to all sorts now, ranging from Abba, to Madonna, via bands like Goldfrapp. It’s a bit of an eclectic mix.

BNS: Did you make your bed this morning?

AMY: Yep!

BNS: The last book you read was? and what did you think of it? and how long ago did you read it?

AMY: The last few books I read were craft books, all in the name of research. Prior to that, it was a book all about Queen Elizabeth I, by an historian called David Starkey, that was a while ago now but i do love history.

and the awesomeness of this blog tour!  YOU can win a copy just by dropping a comment here on this post! and you have other chances to win at all these other stops on the tour here: